75 more cases today and another 6 recovered, with a total of confirmed and probably cases now 589.
Summary
| Total to date | New in last 24 hours | |
|---|---|---|
| Number of confirmed cases in New Zealand | 552 | 76 |
| Number of probable cases | 37 | -1 |
| Number of confirmed and probable cases | 589 | 75 |
| Number of cases in hospital | 12 | – |
| Number of recovered cases | 63 | 6 |
| Number of deaths | 1 |
View full details of the confirmed cases.
View details of significant COVID-19 clusters.
Case numbers are still expected to keep rising over the next week or so but at this stage things seem to be reasonably under control.
Police Commissioner Mike Bush:
Says two staff have tested positive for Covid-19. They are at home and not been hospitalised.
Mike Bush says 4547 Kiwis have returned over the past three days; 94 of those people were symptomatic and are in quarantine.
1200 did not have a satisfactory self-isolation plan.
About 3200 did have a plan and are self isolating, and police will ensure they are complying with those restrictions.
Three people have been arrested for repeat offences of breaching the lockdown and one person is still in custody, Mike Bush says.
He says tourists should refrain from travelling around the country.
If they persistently breach rules, police will take action, Bush says.
The New Zealand Government is today launching a daily email newsletter to give people a new way to stay up-to-date with COVID-19 information.
The daily updates will include:
- The latest COVID-19 news
- Answers to frequently asked questions, eg advice for essential workers
- The latest resources, including translations, posters, and social media images
Sign up to get the latest updates from Unite Against Covid-19(external link)
How easily it can spread.
There was at least one bar open for St Patricks day and also student parties.
Bars were closed and parades cancelled in Ireland for St Patricks Day
OE exposure.
That’s why protecting schools was important (managed very well at Logan Park in Dunedin).
Your NZ 
Alan Wilkinson
/ 30th March 2020Interesting to see if the Govt relaxes the essential businesses list.
I read a UK legal opinion that emergency constraints must be the minimum necessary to secure public safety. The Government and police could be held to be exercising their powers unlawfully if they go further than that requires.
Duker
/ 30th March 2020The exercise of their powers isnt review-able
What is reviewable is the declaration of the nationwide wide State of Emergency , and activation of the Epidemic provisions of the health Act, but no chance of winning on that
Alan Wilkinson
/ 30th March 2020Anything is reviewable if the Supreme Court decides it is. However that may not be until the SoE is lifted.
Duker
/ 30th March 2020No it isnt. This came up during Christchurch Earthquake and various people ‘studied it ‘ in depth.
The emergency constraints specifically refer to any business, place , road etc
Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002
http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2002/0033/51.0/whole.html#DLM149789
Its not a ‘cant do this ‘ rather
“The judge usually won’t look at whether the decision-maker made the “right” decision, but will look instead at the way the decision was made – for example, whether you were given the chance to put your case, and whether the decision-maker considered all the relevant factors.”
https://communitylaw.org.nz/community-law-manual/chapter-3-dealing-with-government-agencies/challenging-decisions-and-conduct-of-government-agencies/going-to-the-courts-judicial-review/
Alan Wilkinson
/ 30th March 2020No, constitutional rights trump executive powers and the courts are responsible for upholding them. Both Parliament and citizens exercise control over the executive as part of that separation of powers that maintain our democracy. Otherwise it is a dictatorship.
Gezza
/ 30th March 2020It would be an interesting situation. The Emergency Powers might be held to be draconian but the exercise of them nevertheless legal unless there was clearly a gross abuse with no reasonable excuse.
Duker
/ 30th March 2020This absurd story in the Herald syndicated from financial Times
‘Covid 19 coronavirus: We are prioritising the old and will have to make it up to the young”
Its another nonsense opinion piece, by some millennial more likely
( Camilla Cavendish , the name just reeks of privilege, and yes ” Baroness Cavendish of Little Venice”)
Ill have to read it later in more detail behind paywall
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=12320849
oldlaker
/ 30th March 2020Duker, Cavendish is 51 and former Director of Policy for Prime Minister David Cameron…
Duker
/ 30th March 2020Over in NSW
“There are now 285 COVID-19 cases from cruise ships in NSW, roughly one in seven of the 1918 cases in the state.”
It was serious mistake to just give unfettered release, especiall y once the Diamond Princess situation was well known
Alan Wilkinson
/ 30th March 2020A local flew to Sydney in mid Feb to join a German (he was originally German) cruise ship on which he was due to give a series of talks. 600 Germans flew out from Germany to join the cruise. Before it sailed countries incl NZ banned cruise ship visits so he got off and flew back. Last I heard it was at Fremantle with virus cases on board and Australia demanding it leave Australian waters. What a cock up.
Duker
/ 30th March 2020There was two cruise ships in SE Asia waters who swapped some of their passengers , one was returning to Europe and the other was going to Australia. Lifeboats shuttled the group changing ships from one to the other
Pete George
/ 30th March 2020The Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is not ruling out keeping up borders restrictions until there is a vaccine for Covid-19.
Jacinda Ardern says having herd immunity by exposing New Zealanders to the virus is not and has never been an option.
Gezza
/ 30th March 2020I caught only a bit of her briefing & Q&A session today on tv1.
There’s a video of it in this article, apparently.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/412949/public-able-to-report-price-gouging-during-covid-19-outbreak-pm
(I wish somebody could stop her saying sumpthink & anythink.)
Gezza
/ 30th March 2020Her briefing starts at 12.20
Gezza
/ 30th March 2020That’s a pretty solid performance from Jacinda. I’ll watch the 1news at 6 later an hour later on Freeview channel 6. I prefer to hear her answering the journos’ questions myself rather rely on our tv presenters & political reporters. They miss stuff out rushing with their own micro-slots on what they (as media ‘stars’) think should make the news.
I though she handled the Maori reporter’s tangihanga question well.
Gezza
/ 30th March 2020Yup. What does tv1 news lead with?
Grief porn. Showing the grieving relatives & pics of our first CV-19 associated death.
Duker
/ 30th March 2020Thats because pivoting from an ‘old person’ to young people is exactly
within the media news rules.
Rule number one – no old people
Rule number two – young females or even better mothers make good story material
Rule three Sick children are good stories to cover instead of old sick people
Gezza
/ 30th March 2020Sure – but as the lead item? Usually reserved for the 3rd news segement along with the cutesy lifestyle mag type stuff.
Alan Wilkinson
/ 30th March 2020TV news is now designed for the cutesy lifestyle mag type people and those who want their daily fix of Jacinda-loving and Trump-hating.
People who want actual news have long since gone elsewhere.
Gezza
/ 30th March 2020Never mind them. How the hell can anyone be a PM and have gone all the way through the NZ education system to tertiary level, gained a degree in communications, & read the words something & anything & STILL be bloody saying them as sumpthink & anythink?
That got corrected in Primary school for most of us in our day. I wonder if she calls onions ungyins? Another one that most kids learned to pronounce quickly when they learned spelling & reading in Primary school.
Gezza
/ 30th March 2020Whoops.
*learned to pronounce properly (not quickly)
Alan Wilkinson
/ 30th March 2020Maybe her teacher gave up after getting her past sumpfink and anyfink?
DaveK
/ 30th March 2020Everyone can be an expert in hindsight but foresight is a little more tricky. This from Bill Gates in 2015 is uncannily prescient…maybe there is a reason he’s a squazillionare
(….and warning, video includes fashion crimes)
Gezza
/ 30th March 2020fashion crimes ! 😀 👍🏼
Gezza
/ 30th March 2020Yes. Very good. Very prescient. I’ve got a lot of time for Bill Gates. A truly very smart guy & a genuine philanthropist. Someone who actually tries to do good for humanity & poor countries in practical ways with the more money he made (& still attracts) than he could ever usefully spend on himself.
Kitty Catkin
/ 30th March 2020I know someone who started off with Bill Gates in the early days then went off on his own and also ended up a billionaire, though not on the Gates scale.. He and his husband built their US house with the dogs in mind; a large front hall acts as an area for the dogs to run in in winter when they can’t play outside.
He is also very generous. He doesn’t waste money; when he’s in NZ (he lives here part of the year) he drives a Mini as his Auckland car.
I was astounded to hear who I’d been entertaining when he came to our house; his name is one with several spellings and I assumed that it was the Irish version. He is very unassuming, no swanking about how rich he is. Or how clever; he is seriously brilliant.
Corky
/ 30th March 2020A big help for him would be his IQ…CLAIMED to be 160. Bill, however, disagrees:
Bill Gates.
✔
@BillGates
· May 16, 2017
Replying to @BillGates
3/ Looking back on when I left college, there are some things I wish I had known.
Bill Gates
✔
@BillGates
4/ E.g. Intelligence takes many different forms. It is not one-dimensional. And not as important as I used to think.
Say what you like, Bill. You may have thought differently if you didn’t have so many cubes under the bonnet.
Gezza
/ 30th March 2020That’s a good observation, that last point. The thing about Bill Gates is that the guy doesn’t need to tell people how smart he is. Others tell them.
Corky
/ 31st March 2020Quite true. I believe to work in the higher echelons of MS and Google you need to have a high IQ or be creative. The two don’t always go together, but do in many instances. I read an article about whizz kids at Google who are intermittently fasting to increase their creativity ( two windows: 16 hours no food. 8 hours for eating.)
They don’t work at doing their jobs better…they work at increasing their creativity to create better jobs.
Duker
/ 30th March 2020Good news , the AirBnB bubble is over
https://www.domain.com.au/news/short-term-holidays-lets-switch-back-to-longer-term-rentals-amid-coronavirus-crisis-944248/?utm_campaign=strap-masthead&utm_source=smh&utm_medium=link&utm_content=pos3
The owners are finding to have nay income at all they have to put them up for long term rental, at a lower income than ‘night by night’
Alan Wilkinson
/ 30th March 2020Dunno what makes you think the “bubble” is over, Duker. Mine are full for the duration. Sure, it’s a reduced nightly tariff but more than satisfactory for this season and far less maintenance required. I had to turn away a request today. We are lucky compared with so many SME businesses getting shafted. And why you seem to take pleasure in that I have no idea.
Pink David
/ 31st March 2020Destroying the tourism industry was always going to have an impact on accommodation prices.
Pink David
/ 31st March 2020I do really hope there is a reporter out there who can ask these same questions of Jacinda.
Gezza
/ 31st March 2020No, they’re a pretty lightweight lot. Mostly females at her press briefings asking questions, by the sound of the videos.
They don’t really ask her any hard questions; most of them are fans who like her. She answers their question & they don’t challenge or grill her further. I suspect they also either toe the line or they wouldn’t get favoured with their question being answered.
There’s more steel in Jacinda nowadays than her kindness mantras suggest. But to be fair she’ll front hard interviews with critics like Hosking & he’ll challenge & grill her. She’s mastered the art of soothing responses that he can’t break thru.
Blazer
/ 31st March 2020destroying the resident population would have worse consequences.
Pink David
/ 31st March 2020The best questions on C-19 you will see. He nails the deeply flawed thinking that has been applied perfectly.
Griff.
/ 31st March 2020The flawed thinking is his and yours Dave .
Germany yesterday 560 deaths from 63 929 infections= 0.87%. The old codger has not realized the death lags infection by two weeks or more.
Korea has tested extensively from their results there is no evidence of significant under reporting of numbers due to non symptomatic infections in a population going undiscovered.
As of 17 march Korea had tested more than 270,000 people, for confirmed 9000 cases.
https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/03/coronavirus-cases-have-dropped-sharply-south-korea-whats-secret-its-success
Their death rate is 1.63 % and still rising despite their number of new cases falling sharply.
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/south-korea/
The death rate can not be known accurately until all cases are resolved unfortunately the longer this takes the higher it gets ….
Still right wing who needs reality when you can glom onto any bit of dribble and believe it despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary eh Dave .
You think this is not a problem so any thing that agrees with that is instantly 100 % correct with no effort to actually examine its accuracy .
Alan Wilkinson
/ 31st March 2020Another small voice of reason:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/120666809/do-the-consequences-of-this-lockdown-really-match-the-threat
What he is too polite to say is that Ferguson’s team of alarmist epidemiologists have a long form of being seriously wrong.
This will go down in history as the great World Wide Flu Panic. There will be some confusion as to whether to place it before or after the contemporaneous World Wide Climate Change Panic. Historians will find common threads and causes shared between the two. They will find that countries where politicians resisted the popular desire to self-flagelate survived far better while those that didn’t suffered a deep long-lasting depression that wiped out a generation of lives and livelihoods.
I hope I’m wrong. There is a chance that Ferguson et al will be discredited quickly enough, even by themselves, to avoid the worst.
Pete George
/ 31st March 2020After this is all over it will be difficult to judge what the best approach would have been. Scientists, medical advisers and leaders are having to make huge decisions with many lives potentially at stake, and of course country and world economies.
From the Stuff article:
Cases in Sweden look relatively low, currently at 4,028 but they have already jumped 328 since 1 pm yesterday (NZ time), deaths jumped 36 to 146, and their deaths/1m population of 14 is now higher than most countries apart from Italy, Spain, France, Iran, France, Switzerland, Belgium, UK and the Netherlands. The US is 8. Sweden’s active to serious/critical ratio is on a par with other European countries.
It may turn out that Sweden got a better balance between health and economy, but it’s too soon to judge on that. An epidemiologist should know that. So should a logical thinker.
Even Trump now thinks that radical action was required, having extended a 15 social isolation plan by a month.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-coronavirus-briefing-death-rate-social-distancing
Trump is now saying/hoping/guessing that deaths in the US may peak about Easter, a big change from his ‘aspiration’ last week of business as usual by then.
Charts here show alarming looking charts for the US: https://graphics.reuters.com/HEALTH-CORONAVIRUS-USA/0100B5K8423/index.html
The cumulative chart fro Sweden looks much like elsewhere: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1102203/cumulative-coronavirus-cases-in-sweden/
Blazer
/ 31st March 2020this will go down in history alright…the world will never be the same.
I predict around 20% of the companies listed on the NZX will be liquidated.
Commercial rents will drop as vacancies accelerate.
Tourism will not recover for at least 2 years ,probably longer.
Unemployment will be over 20%.
NZ’ers will return home in droves.
The banks will need a bail out again,tacitly its happening already.
The ban on cash will become a priority.
As C19 spreads in 3rd world countries without the resources to contain it….casualties will be in the 100’s of thousands .
The retreat of Globalisation as a fortress mentality becomes entrenched.
Germ warfare at its…worst.